Game Design Goals – Pokemon Tabletop Unleashed

Humans and Pokemon must be interdependent – there should be some functions that one group excels at/has exclusive access to
Every Pokemon should be ‘viable’, but remain true to their theme
Legendary Pokemon must be appropriately LEGENDARY and do awesome shit
Trainers and Pokemon need to be more distinct from one another than in PTU, but also easier to generate
High level trainers should be able to fight Legendaries and win without GM fiat
Streamline game mechanics where possible while expanding on them
Introduce more minigames so the game isn’t cutscene > fight > cutscene > fight
Make the math easier to grok
Trainers & Pokemon both need more ways to interact with the world besides “thumbs”
A single Pokemon of a higher tier should be a boss fight for a group without resorting to kludgy mechanics
Things should be less battlemat-focused
Loyalty is thematically vital and must be expanded upon
WTF is a Pokemon Adventure anyway?
The focus should be on a modern, generic Pokemon setting that people expect when they hear “Pokemon” – additional settings rules can come after
Each tier of play is distinct and has different goals for the PCs
Skills separated into groups (sort of like the Body/Mind/Spirit distinction) – Social/Physical/Knowledge?
At any given point people should have 4-8 character options
Mission-based structure outside of towns/dungeons – all pokemon on a route are active and can gangbang you
Morale rules upon being Bloodied/Injured

ACTION RESOLUTION

Everything but trying to hit something: Roll xd6 vs target number

Trying to hit something: Roll 1d20 to hit vs move’s AC + target’s Evasion

Basic Game Flow: Wake up – Downtime Phase If in town – Town Actions Goes about day – Action Phase If entering wilderness – Travel Phase Rest – Downtime Phase

CHALLENGES

Tier 1

Your path is blocked by a rockslide.
The trap that is vexing you is a computer’s security system.
You want their help, but they want a rare Pokemon.
The information you want is known by a Pokemon Professor, or basically Wikipedia.
The target is obscured by a bush.
The treasure is behind a locked chest at the bottom of a lake.
The door is sealed by a log/nails/lock.
To undo the curse you need a lock of hair and the right words.
The clue is in a tree stump, deep in the forest.
You’re trying to track a bad guy who stole some Pokemon and ran away on foot.

Tier 2

Your path is blocked by an arbitrarily deep and wide pit.
The trap that is vexing you is an illusory wall obscuring your way forward.
You want their help, but they want an item that cannot be easily bought, if at all.
The information you want is known by a local specialist whose time is quite valuable.
The target is obscured by a bush they just created out of nothing, or camouflage.
The treasure is behind a sealed door in a military complex.
The door is sealed by a motherfucking vault.
To undo the curse you need a Trevenant’s branch, preferably the one that enacted the curse.
The clue is in Silph Co’s protected corporate servers.
You’re trying to track a runaway Pidgeotto or Haunter.

Tier 3

Your path is blocked by a field where gravity is ten times as strong.
The trap that is vexing you is a sentient forest that grabs anything in it.
You want their help, but they want to be in charge of the largest city in the region.
The information you want is known by an expert scientist who hid himself underground for total privacy.
The target is obscured by an unceasing miasma, supernaturally deep shadows, or invisibility.
The treasure is behind a cloud.
The door is sealed by a secure magnetic lock.
To undo the curse you need a root that grows on the tallest mountain in the world.
The clue is in a secret government base.
You’re trying to track a wayward Moltres to its nest.

Tier 4

Your path is blocked by an interdimensional barrier.
The trap that is vexing you is one that sends you 24 hours back in time or wipes your memory of the last week.
You want their help, but they want a wish from Jirachi.
The information you want is known by a sage who went to the Distortion World and never returned.
The target is obscured by nothing, yet is still hidden.
The treasure is behind a field of frozen time.
The door is sealed by a mechanism that must be simultaneously activated by multiple people… on different continents.
To undo the curse you need a blessing from a legendary pokemon.
The clue is in the memory of a dead man.
You’re trying to track a Darkrai hopping between people’s nightmares.

MISSIONS